Wrestling skills propel Daniel Cormier to UFC championship
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by Craig Sesker USA Wrestling
When Daniel Cormier suffered a stunning knockdown early in his UFC title fight with Anthony “Rumble” Johnson, he resorted to what he knows best.
Wrestling.
The two-time Olympian and World bronze medalist used his superior wrestling skills to storm right back to defeat Johnson and win the Ultimate Fighting Championships light heavyweight title.
Cormier won via submission in the third round over Johnson 10 days ago at UFC 187 at the MGM Grand Arena in Las Vegas.
“Finally – I finally did it,” Cormier said, his voice rising with excitement during an interview Tuesday morning. “It’s an amazing and incredible feeling. Not many guys get to stand in the middle of the UFC Octagon and get that championship belt put around your waist and have your name announced as the UFC champion.
“It was an overwhelming feeling. Nobody can ever take that away from me.”
Cormier won with a rear-naked choke over Johnson to earn the title that Jon Jones had held for over four years. Johnson had knocked Cormier down with a vicious right-hand shot early in the fight.
“We knew Johnson had punching power,” Cormier said. “My first thought after the knockdown was to grab him and get back to wrestling. I couldn’t let him get a follow-up shot off or I might go to sleep.
“Once I got my hands locked around him, I jumped on top and stuck to him like glue. He tried to stand up and I hit a little mat return that you do in wrestling to put him back on the ground. I came back after that knockdown and took control by the end of the first round. When I used my wrestling to take him down in the second round, I knew it was my fight.”
Cormier improved his MMA record to 16-1. He’s now 5-1 in the UFC. He was a last-minute replacement for Jones in the title fight against Johnson.
“It was a huge sigh of relief to finally win that title,” Cormier said. “I’ve been chasing big titles for a really long time, and to finally cash in was great. All that hard work and commitment finally paid off for me.
“It was a feeling similar to when I made my first Olympic Team – just an all-out happiness. Making it even better was when Anthony Johnson came up behind me and put the belt around me. I appreciate him being so classy.”
Cormier said coming up just short of his goals at the NCAA, World and Olympic levels still impact him as a fighter.
“Those setbacks are what drives me and pushes me,” he said. “No doubt, that motivates me to want to be the best.”
Cormier has come a long way since he was unable to compete at the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, China. Cormier made weight the day before competition, but became ill after weigh-ins and had to be taken to the hospital. He still wanted to compete, but doctors told him he would be unable to wrestle the next day.
“After the Olympics, I was so torn up and depressed – I honestly never thought I would get out of it,” he said. “But then I tried this new sport and now I’ve reached the mountaintop. I was a 30-year-old man and I didn’t know what to do with myself. Thankfully, I received another chance when I decided to compete in Mixed Martial Arts. Thank God I had that opportunity.”
Early in his MMA career, in 2010, Cormier was struggling financially. He had to ask his family for help.
“I was broke and tapped out,” he said. “I had to borrow $500 from my parents. It was so hard to ask for that. I had gotten divorced and a lot of things were happening. There were some tough times and I couldn’t pay my rent. I called my parents and they strung together whatever they had, and they sent me $575, and I was very grateful for that.
“No matter how dark things were, I continued to press forward and good things eventually started to happen. My parents have been very supportive and so has my fiancée, Salina. They helped get me through some challenging times.”
Cormier has two young children – a son, Daniel, and a daughter, Marquita.
“Life’s really good right now,” he said. “I’m really happy. I’ve got a great family life and I have great support from them.”
Cormier said he earned $230,000 for his win over Johnson in their UFC light heavyweight title match.
Jones, who beat Cormier in their UFC title fight in January, was stripped of his championship by the UFC after being arrested in April in Albuquerque for his involvement in an alleged hit-and-run accident.
“Jon Jones has way bigger things to worry about right now than fighting,” Cormier said. “He is trying to fix Jon before he fixes anything else. I wish the dude the best in life, in terms of getting it together and getting back to doing what he does best, which is fighting. We will see what happens. You can be sure I will be waiting to step inside the Octagon again when he’s ready to come back.”
Cormier said he has received his share of criticism after winning the UFC title.
“It’s hard to ignore some of the criticism,” Cormier said. “Jon has a lot of fans, but he disqualified himself from competition because of what happened to him outside the Octagon. I can only do what’s in front of me, and they gave me an opportunity to win the UFC title and I took advantage of my opportunity. Until he’s back in the game, he’s not a viable option.”
Cormier, 36, a native of Louisiana, said he expects to fight one more time in 2015.
“I don’t know when yet and I’m not sure who the opponent would be at this time,” Cormier said. “I’m just taking it day-by-day. I have no idea how long I will keep fighting. I’m still enjoying it. I still like to train and I enjoy going to the gym.”
Cormier said he is also enjoying his role working as a television analyst on FOX Sports for its coverage of the UFC. Cormier is an intelligent and articulate speaker who also isn’t bashful about sharing his opinions.
“I love it – I love doing television,” Cormier said. “I love the people at FOX Sports – they have me doing a lot for them and I’m very grateful for those opportunities. So many good things are happening for me right now that I don’t know what to do. Being on TV is an amazing gig. I can’t believe they pay us for that.”
One of the fighters Cormier has been talking about on television is his 2008 Olympic teammate, Henry Cejudo, who is now excelling in the UFC. Cejudo won a gold medal at the 2008 Olympics. Cejudo is fighting in the flyweight class at 125 pounds.
“Henry has done amazingly well,” Cormier said. “Demetrious Johnson is the champion at his weight class, and he is really good. It will take a special athlete to beat him, but Henry is a special athlete. Henry hasn’t even had to wrestle in his fights. He’s been winning with his boxing. When he starts wrestling guys, watch out. He’s going to be really dangerous.”
Cormier continues to train in San Jose, Calif., with UFC heavyweight champion Cain Velasquez, who was an NCAA All-American in wrestling.
Velasquez is returning to competition this month after being out for 18 months with shoulder and knee injuries.
“Cain Velasquez, that dude is still the best,” Cormier said. “He’s so good at everything. He pushes a high pace and he’s an excellent wrestler. He’s got a tremendous skill set. I’ve benefitted a great deal from training with him.”
Cormier remains a huge fan of the sport of wrestling – at the Olympic and NCAA levels. He said he plans to be in Las Vegas in September for the World Championships and he also plans to attend the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
He even offered an early prediction for what the six-man U.S. freestyle team might look like in Rio.
Cormier’s picks for the 2016 U.S. Olympic Team include NCAA champion Tony Ramos, two-time NCAA champion Jordan Oliver, 2012 Olympic gold medalist Jordan Burroughs, three-time NCAA champion Ed Ruth, Junior World champion Kyle Snyder and two-time World medalist Tervel Dlagnev.
“I still love watching wrestling – I have a huge passion for it,” Cormier said. “I’m a big fan of a lot of the guys that are wrestling right now, like Jordan Burroughs and Alex Dieringer and Tervel Dlagnev. I still watch wrestling every chance I get. It’s a great sport. It’s done a lot for me personally.”
Cormier said among the congratulatory messages he has received after winning the UFC title are from numerous people involved in wrestling.
“It’s been very gratifying to hear from so many people in the sport of wrestling after I won the UFC title,” he said. “It’s very meaningful to have so many people in wrestling supporting me. I can’t thank them enough. It means a lot to me, it really does.”
Wrestling.
The two-time Olympian and World bronze medalist used his superior wrestling skills to storm right back to defeat Johnson and win the Ultimate Fighting Championships light heavyweight title.
Cormier won via submission in the third round over Johnson 10 days ago at UFC 187 at the MGM Grand Arena in Las Vegas.
“Finally – I finally did it,” Cormier said, his voice rising with excitement during an interview Tuesday morning. “It’s an amazing and incredible feeling. Not many guys get to stand in the middle of the UFC Octagon and get that championship belt put around your waist and have your name announced as the UFC champion.
“It was an overwhelming feeling. Nobody can ever take that away from me.”
Cormier won with a rear-naked choke over Johnson to earn the title that Jon Jones had held for over four years. Johnson had knocked Cormier down with a vicious right-hand shot early in the fight.
“We knew Johnson had punching power,” Cormier said. “My first thought after the knockdown was to grab him and get back to wrestling. I couldn’t let him get a follow-up shot off or I might go to sleep.
“Once I got my hands locked around him, I jumped on top and stuck to him like glue. He tried to stand up and I hit a little mat return that you do in wrestling to put him back on the ground. I came back after that knockdown and took control by the end of the first round. When I used my wrestling to take him down in the second round, I knew it was my fight.”
Cormier improved his MMA record to 16-1. He’s now 5-1 in the UFC. He was a last-minute replacement for Jones in the title fight against Johnson.
“It was a huge sigh of relief to finally win that title,” Cormier said. “I’ve been chasing big titles for a really long time, and to finally cash in was great. All that hard work and commitment finally paid off for me.
“It was a feeling similar to when I made my first Olympic Team – just an all-out happiness. Making it even better was when Anthony Johnson came up behind me and put the belt around me. I appreciate him being so classy.”
Cormier said coming up just short of his goals at the NCAA, World and Olympic levels still impact him as a fighter.
“Those setbacks are what drives me and pushes me,” he said. “No doubt, that motivates me to want to be the best.”
Cormier has come a long way since he was unable to compete at the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, China. Cormier made weight the day before competition, but became ill after weigh-ins and had to be taken to the hospital. He still wanted to compete, but doctors told him he would be unable to wrestle the next day.
“After the Olympics, I was so torn up and depressed – I honestly never thought I would get out of it,” he said. “But then I tried this new sport and now I’ve reached the mountaintop. I was a 30-year-old man and I didn’t know what to do with myself. Thankfully, I received another chance when I decided to compete in Mixed Martial Arts. Thank God I had that opportunity.”
Early in his MMA career, in 2010, Cormier was struggling financially. He had to ask his family for help.
“I was broke and tapped out,” he said. “I had to borrow $500 from my parents. It was so hard to ask for that. I had gotten divorced and a lot of things were happening. There were some tough times and I couldn’t pay my rent. I called my parents and they strung together whatever they had, and they sent me $575, and I was very grateful for that.
“No matter how dark things were, I continued to press forward and good things eventually started to happen. My parents have been very supportive and so has my fiancée, Salina. They helped get me through some challenging times.”
Cormier has two young children – a son, Daniel, and a daughter, Marquita.
“Life’s really good right now,” he said. “I’m really happy. I’ve got a great family life and I have great support from them.”
Cormier said he earned $230,000 for his win over Johnson in their UFC light heavyweight title match.
Jones, who beat Cormier in their UFC title fight in January, was stripped of his championship by the UFC after being arrested in April in Albuquerque for his involvement in an alleged hit-and-run accident.
“Jon Jones has way bigger things to worry about right now than fighting,” Cormier said. “He is trying to fix Jon before he fixes anything else. I wish the dude the best in life, in terms of getting it together and getting back to doing what he does best, which is fighting. We will see what happens. You can be sure I will be waiting to step inside the Octagon again when he’s ready to come back.”
Cormier said he has received his share of criticism after winning the UFC title.
“It’s hard to ignore some of the criticism,” Cormier said. “Jon has a lot of fans, but he disqualified himself from competition because of what happened to him outside the Octagon. I can only do what’s in front of me, and they gave me an opportunity to win the UFC title and I took advantage of my opportunity. Until he’s back in the game, he’s not a viable option.”
Cormier, 36, a native of Louisiana, said he expects to fight one more time in 2015.
“I don’t know when yet and I’m not sure who the opponent would be at this time,” Cormier said. “I’m just taking it day-by-day. I have no idea how long I will keep fighting. I’m still enjoying it. I still like to train and I enjoy going to the gym.”
Cormier said he is also enjoying his role working as a television analyst on FOX Sports for its coverage of the UFC. Cormier is an intelligent and articulate speaker who also isn’t bashful about sharing his opinions.
“I love it – I love doing television,” Cormier said. “I love the people at FOX Sports – they have me doing a lot for them and I’m very grateful for those opportunities. So many good things are happening for me right now that I don’t know what to do. Being on TV is an amazing gig. I can’t believe they pay us for that.”
One of the fighters Cormier has been talking about on television is his 2008 Olympic teammate, Henry Cejudo, who is now excelling in the UFC. Cejudo won a gold medal at the 2008 Olympics. Cejudo is fighting in the flyweight class at 125 pounds.
“Henry has done amazingly well,” Cormier said. “Demetrious Johnson is the champion at his weight class, and he is really good. It will take a special athlete to beat him, but Henry is a special athlete. Henry hasn’t even had to wrestle in his fights. He’s been winning with his boxing. When he starts wrestling guys, watch out. He’s going to be really dangerous.”
Cormier continues to train in San Jose, Calif., with UFC heavyweight champion Cain Velasquez, who was an NCAA All-American in wrestling.
Velasquez is returning to competition this month after being out for 18 months with shoulder and knee injuries.
“Cain Velasquez, that dude is still the best,” Cormier said. “He’s so good at everything. He pushes a high pace and he’s an excellent wrestler. He’s got a tremendous skill set. I’ve benefitted a great deal from training with him.”
Cormier remains a huge fan of the sport of wrestling – at the Olympic and NCAA levels. He said he plans to be in Las Vegas in September for the World Championships and he also plans to attend the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
He even offered an early prediction for what the six-man U.S. freestyle team might look like in Rio.
Cormier’s picks for the 2016 U.S. Olympic Team include NCAA champion Tony Ramos, two-time NCAA champion Jordan Oliver, 2012 Olympic gold medalist Jordan Burroughs, three-time NCAA champion Ed Ruth, Junior World champion Kyle Snyder and two-time World medalist Tervel Dlagnev.
“I still love watching wrestling – I have a huge passion for it,” Cormier said. “I’m a big fan of a lot of the guys that are wrestling right now, like Jordan Burroughs and Alex Dieringer and Tervel Dlagnev. I still watch wrestling every chance I get. It’s a great sport. It’s done a lot for me personally.”
Cormier said among the congratulatory messages he has received after winning the UFC title are from numerous people involved in wrestling.
“It’s been very gratifying to hear from so many people in the sport of wrestling after I won the UFC title,” he said. “It’s very meaningful to have so many people in wrestling supporting me. I can’t thank them enough. It means a lot to me, it really does.”
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